


The True Tales of Ladybug & Chat Noir

by NotMuchOfAWriter



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: ? - Freeform, Alternate Canon, Canon Related, Canon Rewrite, Comments appreciated, F/M, Fix-It of Sorts, How Do I Tag, I Don't Even Know, My First AO3 Post, Parallels, Slow Burn, but I'll try, even if they're mean, gotta fulfill the potential that the creators are ignoring, just doing my best, lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:40:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24986215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NotMuchOfAWriter/pseuds/NotMuchOfAWriter
Summary: This show has some great potential that I believe has been squandered. So I'm trying to fix that.Mostly going to follow the canon of the show (starting with Origins because why wouldn't we start at the start? Hello?) but it will diverge at points - more and more as I continue writing.As Paris faces the dangers of their first supervillain, two teenagers are gifted magic powers to face the danger head on. But who could be behind the masks? Where did these powers come from? Will life ever be the same afterwards?Equal parts superheroes fighting to save the day and teenagers trying to live a normal life.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 1
Kudos: 7





	1. A Normal Life

“Master, I can sense it. Someone has reawakened the power of the Moth Miraculous!”

Wang Fu perked up, the cup of hot tea stalling before his lips, “Are you certain, Wayzz? All these years and Nooroo has been found?”

“Yes Master,” said the green turtle Kwami, but there was hesitation in his voice, “But I fear it is an evil aura. It seems that whoever holds its power aims to use it for vile intentions.”

Fu sighed, resting his cup back on the table. He raised his gaze to meet his young apprentice across the table from him, “Then it seems that we must take action sooner than expected, and sooner than I wished. I am sorry to say, but you are not yet ready to take on the full responsibilities as a Guardian, however, if what Wayzz says is true, we must act now.”

The old man hoisted himself to his feet and made his way to a delicately carved gramophone, decorated with ornate dragons – where he input a secret code. His apprentice dutifully remained occupied with cleaning up the teacups, ignoring the pattern to reveal the wonders inside the little box. When Master Fu returned, he held two small jewelry boxes in his hands, equally intricate and detailed as the gramophone they came from.

“I hope you are fully aware of the gravity of this situation,” Master Fu said sternly, but not without care, “You mentioned to me before your choice for this Miraculous,” he said, handing over the box in his right hand, “But we both struggled to find the proper fit for this one,” he said, hefting the other and staring at it like a Rubik’s cube that needed solving.

_Yes_ , he thought to himself, _this one is often a difficult decision_.

Quickly, the old master shook himself from his contemplation, “Of course, that is to be expected. I will deliver this one myself as quickly as I can to someone who will fit best, and you should deliver that one to your choice with equal haste. But remember, do so with discretion, the more who know these secrets, the more dangerous they become for the rest of the world.”

The apprentice bowed with respect, “I will Master.” And with that simple oath, left to complete the delivery, leaving the old man almost alone in the tiny massage studio.

Fu settled back into his seat and returned to quiet consideration of the small box in his hand. His small green companion alighting on the table where the apprentice sat just a moment ago. Wayzz remained quiet, allowing Fu time with his thoughts.

“It seems that everything has accelerated rather quickly,” the Kwami said, finally breaking the silence. “We believed the Moth to be lost forever. Perhaps there is a chance that the other one survived as well?”

A look of pain swept across the old man’s face, sinking the shadows of his few wrinkles deeper. The memories were unpleasant ones, but Fu could never forget that fateful night, “That is what I am afraid of, Wayzz. They were lost together, so it is possible they were found together. And if Nooroo has fallen to an evil wielder, then I worry what havoc they could wreak…”

A tiny hand was placed atop Fu’s own, “I understand, Master,” his voice spoke gently, but carried much weight with it, “We will save Nooroo, you know that we hold more power than whatever villain has enslaved him, so long as you trust in those that are granted that power, we shall succeed.”

“I know, Wayzz,” Fu sighed, “Power in the hands of good must succeed. However,” and it was here that he took a pause, “there is power in the hands of evil that we cannot match, simply by the merit that we must be good. That is why the balance must be kept, and why we cannot give away these powers so willingly, it took ages to determine who would be the next Guardian, but I fear we must rush the next decisions.”

“But you trust your apprentice, do you not? He will be the next Guardian, and my next wielder?”

Fu nodded, “When the time is right, Wayzz. But we must now make the time right for our little friend here,” his eyes twinkled fondly as he examined the box in his hand, “For one cannot keep balance without the other.”

“We had better start searching, then,” Wayzz said, perking up.

“Yes, why don’t we take a walk?”

Marinette Dupain-Cheng was a normal girl, with a normal life. She woke up late for school at times, she was clumsy, she had never had a boyfriend, and she had to deal with a bully at school. In many ways, she was never destined for greatness.

Today was a day where most of those things were forcing their way to the forefront of her mind. In her haste to get to the first day of school on time, she had ruined most of her breakfast, and she was certain that Chloe Bourgeois was going to make fun of her for the orange juice stain on her pants. However, despite it all, she made it into her classroom with plenty of time to spare, she had been this way for most of her life, so she learned to plan accordingly.

The classroom was only partially filled, and Marinette was glad to see familiar faces from last year in attendance. Kim was one such familiar face, though his growth spurt had him rivaling Ivan, the largest boy in school, who was sitting next to him – the former was much louder than the latter, his ego seemingly boosted along with his height. One unfamiliar face was hiding behind purple bangs near the back of the room, sitting next to the friendliest girl in school, Rose – already trying to make the shrinking violet bloom it would seem. The only other student in at the time was Nino, sitting in the back, his head bumping along with the beat in his headphones.

A sigh of relief escaped Marinette as she made her way to her usual seat in the second row. She dropped her bag beside her, only half aware of Miss Bustier’s call for Nino to move to the front of the class. She was distracted by the most obnoxious _Ahem_ in her life. She already knew who it belonged to, before turning her head.

“Chloe…” Marinette’s voice dripped with icy malice as she gazed upon the school’s queen bee and her little lap dog, Sabrina. They looked the part, Chloe wearing her signature yellow jacket above a striped shirt, and Sabrina waiting dutifully at her side, excited to jump at the smallest order barked at her.

“That’s _my_ seat,” Chloe insisted, one hand on her hip, the other pointing a disgusted finger at where Marinette had parked herself.

_Well at least she hasn’t mentioned the orange juice_ , Marinette thought to herself, _yet_. “But Chloe, this has always been my seat.”

“Well not _this_ year,” Chloe scoffed, “ _This_ year, it’s _my_ seat. Want to know why?” Chloe asked, leaning over the desk to sneer in Marinette’s face. She could see her own reflection in the sunglasses perched atop Chloe’s blonde head.

_Not really, but I have a feeling that you’re going to tell me._

“It’s because _that’s_ Adrien’s seat,” Sabrina interjected, startling Marinette, who had begun to think she was incapable of such acts. Marinette followed the line from the girl’s hand to the chair in front of her, next to where Nino had been reseated.

“Who’s Adrien?”

Chloe let out a huff of indignant air, “Only _the_ most fabulous fashion model in the world?” She said, snatching a magazine from Sabrina’s hands and stuffing it in Marinette’s face, so close she couldn’t make out the words on it, “Son of _the_ Gabriel Agreste, who just so happens to be on good terms with my father – you know, the _mayor_ of _Paris_?”

She had never really been one to keep her voice low – except when whispering behind someone’s back – but Chloe definitely raised her voice for an audience. It seemed to work too, most of the students who had filed in behind the duo had fallen quiet as she rambled.

“Our families are close; I’ve known Adrien since he was practically a baby! We were absolutely _made_ for each other. Today is his first day in public school, and I will not allow his introduction to it be _your_ ugly face, Dupain-Cheng.”

Marinette had finally adjusted her line of sight to take in the magazine she was staring at. She had seen it before, in fact, ignoring the little hearts that had been drawn around the model, it was the exact same one that Marinette had at home. She knew the Agreste brand well, it was one of the main inspirations of her fashion design dream, she had never really paid attention to the model until now.

He was attractive, certainly, but that was to be expected of the business. Marinette was honestly more interested in the stitch lining of the t-shirt he was wearing than the boy’s golden hair or emerald eyes.

“Now _shoo_!” dismissed Chloe with a wave of her hands like Marinette was a particularly annoying bug.

“Hey, why don’t you buzz off?” A strong voice rang out in opposition, unfamiliar to the students of the class. It came from the girl standing behind Marinette, bespectacled, and wearing a rather worn plaid shirt and equally faded jeans.

“Oh, look Sabrina, it seems we have a new girl in class this year! Tell me, who are you and why should I care?” Chloe said, already paying more attention to her nails than to the opposition in front of her.

“The name’s Alya Cesaire, and you better remember it because – “

“Too late! Already forgot,” that drew a snicker from Sabrina, which only seemed to rile Alya up more.

“Listen here, you little – “ This time, Alya was interrupted by Miss Bustier, who had finally finished writing on the blackboard.

“Seats please, everyone, you’ll have a chance to socialize during your lunch break,” spotting the group around Marinette, she continued, “Two to a desk please, we have three seats open in the front row, I promise I don’t bite.”

Alya seemed uninterested in moving, continuing to glare at Chloe, who matched it with a rather bored expression. Sensing the cold war boiling around her, Marinette quickly scooped up her open bag and took Alya by the hand, “We’ll sit over there, sorry Miss Bustier!” And proceeded to drag her defender to the unoccupied desk across the room from Chloe and where the potential Adrien Agreste would be seated.

It was fascinating to be in a class with the son of a world-renowned fashion designer, but if he was anything like Chloe, Marinette would prefer to keep him at a distance.

Adrien Agreste was far from a normal kid, but he desperately wanted a normal life. He was the son of the elusive and enigmatic Gabriel Agreste, and that wasn’t just how the press saw him. Adrien had struggled connecting with his father ever since his mother disappeared. In fear that he might meet the same fate, Adrien had been handled by rigorous routine and schedule since. All he really wanted was freedom.

Even now, simply going to school like another teenager had been a struggle. He had to enlist Chloe’s help to learn how he could attend, and he had to escape supervision just to get there, which was why he was currently running late to class – and running from the ominous silver car coming up behind him.

“Adrien be reasonable!” called the woman in a crisp business suit as she stepped out of the car while he rounded the steps.

“It seems like I’m the only one who is!” he responded, pivoting in place, “My own father won’t let me out of the house! Why can’t I go to school like a normal kid?”

“Because,” the woman responded with a more even tone, “You know what your father wants. Come home, Adrien, we can talk about this later. You’re missing your Chinese lesson.”

“I don’t care Nathalie!” Adrien snapped back. She had never seen such defiance in his eyes. Just as the woman was about to snap another order at the boy, however –

“Ooohhhh!” A loud groan cut through the tension in the air, an old man in a Hawaiian shirt had collapsed on the ground, his cane just out of his reach. Adrien barely took a glance at Nathalie, who did not move to help the man. Adrien did.

“Here you go,” he said softly, helping the man to his feet and handing the cane back to him. A strong about-face from his previous attitude towards his captors.

“What a kind young man,” the old man said, patting the boy on his shoulder before continuing on his way past the school, whistling softly as if nothing had happened.

As Adrien turned back, he saw that Nathalie had moved to block the steps of the school, leaving Adrien one path, back into the car – backed into a corner, he went quietly.

After the first bell had rang, Marinette turned to her seat partner, Alya, who still seemed to be steaming from the earlier altercation, “Hey, thanks for sticking up for me earlier. You didn’t have to, now Chloe probably has it out for you too…”

To Marinette’s slight surprise, Alya seemed to brighten up at that rather quickly, “Oh pfft, it was nothing. If that’s what she’s like, I’d rather she knows that I hate her rather than avoid her bad side. I’m Alya by the way.”

Marinette giggled a bit and took an offered handshake, “So I heard. I’m Marinette, it’s really nice to meet you. Where’d you learn to stand up to bullies like that?”

“Never liked them,” Alya explained with a shrug, “Probably too many comic books to be honest, but I do love me a super heroine!”

With that, Alya struck a pose, puffing out her chest and flexing her arms. That elicited another laugh from Marinette, who quickly decided that she had made a new friend.

Adrien sulked at his kitchen table, listing various historical facts he had memorized from the book back to Nathalie as she quizzed him over and over again. He had made his case and was explicit about his unhappiness with the situation on the drive back to the mansion in which he was held prisoner. But it made no difference, Nathalie would only allow what his father had prescribed for him, his complaints _should_ be directed at his father, but the man was never around for such discussions.

Even now, when Adrien had snuck out through his bedroom window, the man was most likely unaware. _Probably in a meeting with some investors_ , Adrien thought bitterly to himself, _didn’t even notice I was gone_.

“Pardon me, Nathalie,” Adrien looked up, shocked to see the man he was just thinking about standing at the end of the table, “If I might interrupt for a moment.” Nathalie nodded and quickly excused herself.

A cold silence took the room upon her exit. Adrien’s tongue sat frozen in his mouth beneath his father’s icy stare, “I heard about what happened. I will not have you running away to join the circus that is public education. You will stay here where I can keep an eye on you, Adrien.”

“But why, Father?” Adrien asked, his voice pleading instead of demanding, “All I want is to go and make friends like a normal kid!”

“You are not a normal child, Adrien, you need to understand that. We can discuss this later,” He snapped his fingers to allow Nathalie back into the room, “For now, continue your studies, and know that I love you.”

Alya and Marinette had been enjoying their class time together. Marinette had invited Alya to come to the bakery and enjoy some of her family’s food sometime and even drew a few quick doodles of the two girls as super heroines, defeating a bee-themed supervillain.

However, just before their final class before the lunch break ended, the calm was broken. This time, not by Chloe – who had been sulking that her boyfriend had not come to school yet; but by the normally-quiet Ivan.

“Shut up Kim!” he roared, standing up, a fist raised towards his seatmate.

“Ivan!” Miss Bustier called out, appalled at the outburst.

The large teenager sputtered a bit, gesturing a crumpled note at the jock next to him who was trying to contain his laughter.

“I think you should take a walk to the principal’s office to clear your head,” Miss Bustier said calmly, but firmly. Ivan glowered once more at Kim before stalking out, slamming the door shut behind him.

“What was that about?” Alya whispered, “Is he normally…?”

“No, not at all,” Marinette whispered back, “He’s normally a giant teddy bear…”

Miss Bustier rapped on the black board to silence the low murmurs throughout the room and redirect the attention back to the lesson.

Meanwhile, in a dark room filled with pure white butterflies, stood a man in a purple suit and grey mask. A cane rested evenly in his hand and he spoke, almost to himself, in a smooth voice.

“I feel it. Hatred, bitterness, and… heartbreak? How unfortunate for this young man. However, luck seems to shine on me today, it will be the perfect way to test my newfound power,” the man reached out his hand to cradle a butterfly that alighted upon his palm.

“Fly, my little Akuma. Let us see exactly what you can do…”

The butterfly, now stained black with the evil of its creator, flew quickly to its target and transferred the power to the note crumpled in his fist. The symbol of all that was wrong around him, the anchor of his negativity, it weighed down on the poor boy’s soul and tipped the balance.

The vile feelings welled up, so powerful that they blinded him from all other things.

“Hello Stoneheart, I am Hawkmoth.”


	2. Stoneheart - part 1

Nathalie noticed that Adrien was not paying attention after the confrontation with his father. He would check his notes more often and the number of incorrect answers she received rose, of course, she could continue into the history lesson, but it would only lead to a poor performance – which she suspected would only raise the tension between father and son.

Therefore, “You may take a break for now, Adrien,” she offered with a sigh. No sooner than she finished her sentence, the boy had already left the room, slinging his school bag over his shoulder.

The mansion was large, but relatively empty. Many paintings and photos once livened the space, but they had been taken down at Gabriel’s request. Now, instead of sunlight and warmth filling the high ceilings and marble floors, it was a hollow space that only echoed the loneliness of Adrien’s footsteps.

Briefly, Adrien considered making a run for it again. He had escaped once; he could probably make it out again. However, he knew that his bodyguard would be sent out after him with Nathalie in tow to bring him back. He had already upset his father once today, if he pushed his already rotten luck, it would likely end with bars on his window.

Inside his room, Adrien tossed his bag on to the short table in front of the television. He knew that it was unreasonable, in a way, to want to leave this house. It had many things that a boy his age could only dream of: a collection of a million movies and songs, more comic books and video games than he could reasonably finish, half of his wall had even been converted into a rec area complete with a basketball hoop and climbing wall.

And yet, with no one to share it with, it was just as empty as the rest of the house. Nothing in his room excited him. He wanted to throw a fit but could not find the energy to even throw a basketball. So instead, he sat on the couch and turned on the television.

The lunch bell had just rung and as the students were exiting Miss Bustier’s class, many were returning to the discussion of Ivan’s explosion. A few who knew him were gathering around Kim to try and hear the story, but Marinette simply walked past, leading her new friend down the steps to the open courtyard.

“Aren’t you a little curious what happened back there?” Alya asked, looking back over her shoulder at the small crowd that had formed.

Marinette shrugged, “It’s not really my business. If I see Ivan, I’d like to know if he’s alright, but Kim can be… dramatic.”

As if to illustrate her point, a couple of students from another class hurried past, referring to the outburst as a full-fledged fight already. “Word travels fast in a small school, you’ll hear the story eventually,” Marinette explained, “And who knows? Maybe you’ll be lucky enough to hear the truth.”

Alya frowned at that point but continued onwards, taking a seat at one of the round tables set up. A few other students began to fill the seats around them, and the drama seemed to be drowned out in the normal din that came from a high school lunch.

“So, what’s there to do for fun around here?” Alya asked, beginning to take out her lunch. However, before Marinette had a chance to respond, a loud disturbance was heard above the students.

It was hard to place the sound at first, but as eyes came to meet its source, it was quickly identified. The snapping of wood as the door to the principal’s office burst from its hinges. The shatter of glass as it smacked into the floor a flight of stairs beneath. And the horrible grinding of rough stone scraping and rolling over the refined brickwork of the school.

A rockslide seemed to surge from the crater that once was Mr. Damocles’ office, rearing back and a horrible mouth split apart a boulder to bellow out, “KIIIM!”

The students were stunned for a moment, save for Alya, who quickly whipped out her phone and snapped a picture of the sight. The flash seemed to be all that was needed to set panic into the masses, many screamed and ran, leaving their lunches uneaten. Marinette was one of these students, but as many bolted for the open exit, she happened to turn back and see that her new friend was not following her – in fact, it seemed that she was sprinting into the chaos that the others were trying to flee.

Whatever the rock monster was, it had vanished from Marinette’s view, only to suddenly reappear with a jarring earthquake as it landed in the courtyard behind the students. “KIIIM!” the beast roared again.

_Kim?_ Marinette thought to herself, _Ivan?!_

Another flash from a camera alerted Marinette to Alya’s location. She was stuck up underneath the overhang, attempting to stay out of sight while also furtively snapping pictures. Lucky for her, the monster – no, Ivan – no, whatever had _become_ of Ivan was focused on one student atop the overhang, Kim.

Marinette only had a moment to react, her eyes drew in the scene around her: her friends in danger, her school being broken apart, and her standing there – no, she was moving. Without thinking, Marinette scooped a chunk of debris off the ground and hurled it at Ivan’s head. She was not a great shot, but Ivan had grown even larger than he was before, and the relative pebble tapped lightly against his shoulder.

Energy crackled against the monster’s body and Marinette could see the rocks swell, as if muscles being flexed, and Ivan grew. However, the brief moment of confusion the hit had caused allowed Kim the room to dive out of sight, hiding in a room he had never frequented – the library.

“Alya! Run!” Marinette cried out, sprinting back towards the front entrance where the rest of her classmates had since scattered into the street. She could already hear police sirens heading her way.

Taking the hint, Alya ran, utilizing the size difference to maneuver around the staircase and pillars of the overhang and just barely avoid the rocky grasp of whatever had become of Ivan.

When the two girls finally cleared the steps to the school, they could hear more destruction behind them. “KIIIM!” An explosion of rubble as a fist smashed into the wall, searching for its target. A line of police vehicles had already been set up, and officer Raincomprix ushered them behind it and away from the scene of danger.

Marinette wasted no time in sprinting for home, already feeling lightheaded.

“…Where apparently Paris’ first ever supervillain has been reportedly sighted!” Adrien paused his channel surfing and sat up, suddenly at full attention. That was where he was just a few hours ago!

Was Chloe alright? What happened? Did the students get out safely? He watched as scenes played out in front of him from an aerial news helicopter. It showed a line of officers, at first everything seemed eerily calm, but then a pile of rubble seemed to stand and march towards the front of the school.

The officers opened fire, but it seemed ineffective, only agitating the monster into growing larger and louder. The police fled as it grabbed a police cruiser in one hand and hurled it towards the camera. The last thing Adrien heard before the feed cut out was the cameraman cursing and the monster roaring.

Adrien quickly switched to the next news station, just in time to catch a student attempting to outrun the rockslide heading towards him.

Marinette only paused briefly to let her parents know that she was safe, but as they went to the window to watch, she felt herself starting to wear down.

“I can’t watch,” Marinette mumbled weakly. She ran up to her room and collapsed on her couch, breathing heavily. She had not even realized that she was still wearing her school bag.

Adrien caught something out of the corner of his eye, a little jewelry box of some kind was poking out of his bag. It rested on his coffee table, unmoving. Yet somehow, despite what was going on in front of him, Adrien’s gaze was fixated on the little box.

Black, with red etchings. Intricately designed. He had no idea where it had come from, he was the only one who had handled his bag. It was most certainly not an Agreste brand item. So, what was it?

_Clunk_. A small sound stirred Marinette from her stupor, despite all the cacophony going on across the street from her house, this sound caught her attention. She rolled her head to the side and spotted a little jewelry box. She felt so tired, and yet something about the box seemed to fill her with vigor.

It was small enough to easily fit in her palm, a dark wood with little red etchings and a tiny gold clasp keeping it shut. What could it be? Her mother did not wear much jewelry, let alone keep it stashed in Marinette’s backpack.

Adrien held the tiny box in his hand, something about it tugged him towards it. As if standing at the edge of a mountain and peering into the deep waters far below. A black hole dragging him towards its center.

Marinette examined the box which filled her with an electric energy. She could feel it send tingles down her spine like a waterfall cascading into a lagoon. A strange warmth spread through her like the sunrise on a cloudy morning

Though separated by distance and anonymity, they unclasped the box and opened it at the same time. Both were met with a flash of stunning light, a surge of power ripped away at the world they had known. From this point on, their destinies had been destroyed and created anew.

Across Paris, in a small massage studio, an old man in a Hawaiian shirt had his eyes glued to the television. His brow was furrowed, and his grip was tight on his pant legs as he resisted the urge to run across the city and do something himself.

“It is worse than we feared, Wayzz,” Wang Fu muttered.

The Kwami nodded his silent agreement. He also could not look away from what was happening. His brother must have been terrified, for the evil that was being exemplified was monumental. The very same day that Nooroo’s power was rediscovered, it was already being used to cause horrible pain and suffering.

“To attack a school…” Fu shook his head, “The new wielder of the Moth is truly depraved. And to attack so soon, so eagerly. Do they consider this to be a test? A game?”

Wayzz steadied himself with a breath and laid a hand upon his Master in an attempt to cool his fury as well, “We must trust fate, Master. We have already set everything into motion that we can. We can only hope that we are correct.”

As another newsfeed was cut off by the devastation of the Akuma’s wake, Fu finally took a breath to steady himself, “I trust my apprentice’s decision, Wayzz. I only hope that the delivery was successful. And that I also chose properly, I have failed in my duties before, and have sworn to never do so again.”

“And to that end, you have succeeded, Master. But this is beyond the scope of our abilities. We are no heroes, only Guardians.”

“I am simply nervous, Wayzz,” said Fu, turning the television to the next station that had a view of the Akuma, “For all those involved.”

Marinette opened her eyes slowly as the light faded, sitting within the box was a small pair of black earrings. Two little dots atop an otherwise red velvet cushion. However, what made her almost drop the box in fear was not the contents, but what was floating above them.

A tiny creature, no bigger than the mouse at her computer, a brilliant shade of red with three distinct black spots adorning its forehead and cheeks. It had short, stubby limbs and long, thin antennae. When it opened its eyes slowly, they were a clear, crystal blue.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng, it is nice to meet you…”

“AHHH!”

The thing flew up to cover Marinette’s mouth with its tiny arms, “Please don’t scream! I’m not dangerous!”

Despite its warnings, Marinette toppled off the side of her couch and started to retreat, scooting backwards into the wall. To her credit, she switched her screaming into sputtering, trying to articulate what it was that was slowly floating towards her.

“Wha-wh-what are- Are you? Is that a… What? It’s a…”

“Shh…” the creature cooed softly, attempting to calm the frightened teenager, “I’m not going to hurt you. My name is Tikki, I’m a Kwami. Do you know what that is?”

Marinette struggled to find words, so she simply shut her mouth and shook her head vigorously. _Is this thing_ talking _to me?_ She wondered, _Am I hallucinating? Where did it come from?_

“To put it simply, I’m the spirit of creation. I know it must sound incredulous to hear, but I promise you, I will not lie to you. I’m a magic spirit that has helped humanity since before it existed, and now I’m here to help you.”

Marinette’s fear had now been mostly replaced with confusion. It seemed that whatever outburst her parents might have heard was lost in whatever was going on outside, though Marinette could hear most of the commotion moving further from their location.

“Alright, I know it’s hard to believe, but I have a way to prove it to you. If you put on the earrings in that box,” Tikki the Kwami pointed at the box that had been discarded to the floor, “And say ‘Spots On!’ then everything will become clear. I promise.”

Marinette slowly moved, keeping her eyes on the little spirit in front of her. To its credit, the thing didn’t seem threatening, and in fact was waiting rather patiently as Marinette made her way to the unassuming jewelry and picked them up. She took out the small earrings that she wore to school that day and replaced them with the ones in the box.

However, she did not speak for a few heartbeats.

“You only have to trust me once,” Tikki said with a soft smile.

Adrien’s vision cleared as he blinked the light away. He glanced at the box, still in his hand, and was met by a rather plain silver ring. Confused at first, Adrien then heard a soft snoring sound – and upon looking down at the coffee table, found a small black creature laying on its back. It could probably have worn the ring inside as a belt if it wanted to. Two large triangular ears jutted from its head, and what Adrien could only assume were whiskers twitched lightly in its sleep.

“Um, excuse me?” Adrien asked, feeling a little silly to be talking to whatever this thing was. He was met with a mewling yawn as the creature stretched and peered up with vivid green eyes, its pupils’ slits like a cat.

“Oh, whassup?” Replied the creature, scratching its tummy as it floated up like a soap bubble, “Got anything to eat around here? I’m starving.”

Adrien was surprised to find the little thing could talk, but something about the nonchalant attitude forced him to relax a little bit.

“Um, no, sorry. What are- Sorry, _who_ are you?”

“Oh right, the introduction,” whatever it was, it was now doing stretches, “Let’s see if I can remember what Tikki wrote down for me last time. _Ahem_! The name’s Plagg, I’m the Black Cat Kwami of destruction. Want superpowers?”


	3. Stoneheart - part 2

Kim was lucky that he was so athletic. He ran as fast as he could, but whatever was chasing him was so big that one of its steps covered the length of his long jump. His breathing was running ragged, his feet ached as they pounded against the streets of Paris. At first, Kim was surprised at how _focused_ it was on getting him, but from the past few minutes, he had become acquainted with its rage.

“KIIIM!”

_I heard you the last eight times!_ He thought to himself. A shadow passed overhead, and Kim instinctively dodged out of the way, tumbling to the ground as a car fell from the sky on to another next to him. He cowered on the ground, curling into himself as he considered if he was going to die.

_I’m sorry Ivan! I didn’t mean it!_

“Master!” The door slammed open, startling Master Fu and Wayzz. His apprentice was clearly winded, appearing to have run all the way from the school.

“Shut the door,” Fu instructed, turning back to the television with a steady gaze. His apprentice joined him on the floor mat, staring transfixed at the television.

“Have they appeared yet?” Asked the teenager, worry written clearly across his features.

“Not yet,” replied Master Fu, “But they should soon. I delivered the Miraculous earlier, though it was to someone outside the very school in the center of the attack. Hopefully its wielder was not incapacitated by the Akuma.”

_I can only hope that I chose wisely._

“I finished my delivery too. I didn’t see her get out though.”

“It would seem that the Akuma has its focus set,” Wayzz said, pointing to the screen. The monster stood head and shoulders above lampposts and was almost as tall as the buildings surrounding it now. It stepped with purpose, following a fleeing figure. “Fortunate for our young heroes, but not quite so lucky for the poor boy there.”

The trio watched as the Akuma stooped to lift a car in one hand and hurl it with a yell towards the retreating figure, causing him to fall prone.

“That’s Kim!” shouted the alarmed apprentice, leaping to his feet. His alarm turned to panic as he watched the beast stalk slowly towards his classmate.

Marinette stood nervously in front of her mirror. As she was mentally preparing herself, Tikki the Kwami had been explaining what would happen in an attempt to assuage her fears. Unfortunately, the words were getting jumbled in Marinette’s overwhelmed brain.

_Magic? Superpowers? Akuma?_ She thought to herself, _what is going on? What happened to Ivan? How is any of this going to help?_

Tikki wanted to give the poor girl time to process all that was happening to her in a relatively quick time frame, but unfortunately, time was not a luxury they had at the moment. She chose to try prodding the girl forward gently, “The magic words are ‘Spots On.’”

Marinette took one last steadying breath, “Then… Spots On.”

Tikki disappeared in a beam of light, slipping into the earrings and giving them color and life. Energy spread throughout Marinette’s body, filling her with an unknown power that crackled to life across her skin. Her clothes vanished – replaced by a red jumpsuit covered in black spots. Ribbons adorned her hair and a mask grew to cover her face. Sitting on her waist was a circular disk attached by a string that wrapped across her.

_A magic yo-yo?_ She considered for a moment. _Magic. Superpowers. Akuma!_ They were all real! Everything sort of clicked into place as Marinette looked into the mirror. Kim was in danger, Ivan was not himself, and now, neither was Marinette.

She seemed taller, a little more mature. Heroic even, if she corrected her posture. She was about to try posing like Alya had that morning when another loud crash a few streets away stirred her from her wonder.

Admiration and exploration could wait – now was the time for action.

Plagg floated lazily in the air, rubbing his stubby hand against where his nose would be. He seemed completely nonplussed by the catastrophe occurring on television, and oblivious as Adrien slipped the ring on his finger. “Yeah, so basically if you say ‘Claws Out’ then you become a superhero. Destroy stuff in one touch, magic stick, free costume… Not a bad deal if you ask- “

“Claws Out!”

Adrien only briefly heard a complaint towards his impatience as the Kwami was sucked into the ring by a beam of black light. A charge like an electric currently streaked up Adrien’s arm and then shot through his whole body, even leaping up his hair and down his spine. When the sensation was over, Adrien gave his body a look over – he had ears and a tail, his eyes had become totally green save for the black slit pupils. Looking at his hands, they were tipped with tiny claws.

Adrien smiled and approached his window, withdrawing a baton from his back and pressing a button, testing its features. It felt natural to him as its size changed to his desire. He felt the bonds that so often constricted him as Adrien crumble to dust as a sense of freedom soared in his chest.

With a grin, he leapt to action.

“KIIIM!” Ivan roared, egged on by the voice in his head. It focused his fury, his embarrassment, his resentment. All the hatred and heartache and negative emotions in his body.

He raised his foot above the cowering boy in front of him. He could crush the little thing without consequence, his troubles would go away as easy as crushing a bug. Then maybe he could calm down. All the horrible thoughts and feelings might subside for a moment as he searched for catharsis.

And yet, he hesitated briefly. Something deep inside him might have still recognized Kim as a classmate. Perhaps Ivan was a softie deep down who could not bring himself to harm even the smallest, most irritating bug. Maybe the emotions weren’t strong enough to cause such evil.

But still, the foot eventually came down.

And was repelled.

Something tugged at his leg, and another blocked the path downward. Peeking underneath the foot, Stoneheart noticed a hero in a black suit. He was holding a rod that had extended from the ground up into the path of his stomp.

Another tug pulled him slightly off balance, bringing his foot back to the ground, safely away from his target. A string unwrapped and returned a small yo-yo to a red clad heroine standing further down the street from him.

While his back was turned, the one in black took the chance and cracked his stick against Stoneheart’s boulder head. Stoneheart couldn’t help to grin to himself as he swelled in size again, his power rising with his anger – now focused on the two pests he saw before him instead of the civilian who had managed to get up and run.

“Hitting him only makes him stronger!” The girl cried out, zipping into the air before the Akuma could make a move towards her.

“Now you tell me!” The other responded, using the stick to pole vault up towards his shoulders.

Stoneheart struck out with his arm, only to find it slowed as the string from the yo-yo wrapped across his wrist. A moment later and he would’ve had the little cat. But now, the hero scampered across his shoulders and out of his line of sight.

With a shout and a sudden surge, Stoneheart yanked on the yo-yo string and used the momentum to slam his back into the apartment building behind him. The impact caused him to grow again, and he presumed whatever stray was disturbing him was crushed beneath the weight. As the red one was pulled from her position atop the building across the street, Stoneheart grabbed her with his open hand and began to squeeze.

But something caught his eye as she struggled against his colossal fingers – two little glittering red jewels on her ears. They transfixed him for a moment, and he felt Hawkmoth’s velvety voice enter into his mind once more.

“The Miraculous! This might be easier than I thought. Seize them, Stoneheart!”

Marinette watched in horror as a fist descended upon her, the thumb and forefinger extending out towards her head. _Is he going to pop me like a grape?!_ She panicked. Before she could shut her eyes and begin praying, she saw something interesting in the giant hand – what appeared to be another boulder, but with jagged edges, and a dark shade of purple, nearly black.

_That’s no boulder,_ she thought, _it looks like a wad of paper?_

“Hey brick-face!” A shout rang out from behind the monster. Whoever Marinette had seen earlier jumping to Kim’s defense was still alive!

He sprang on to Stoneheart’s face and jammed his stick into the grip holding Marinette. It was snug, but she was grateful when the leverage helped pry open the fingers and allowed her escape.

She dropped to the ground and, thinking quickly, set about stringing her yo-yo around the legs while it was distracted dealing with the hero dancing on his face.

Adrien was not exactly sure what he was doing. But he was definitely doing it. The monster was swinging its head and shoulders, trying to throw him off, but his feet kept finding new purchase and his hands scrambled to hold on to the little crevices of the rocky exterior.

He had thought that it might have worked like a video game where he could trick the enemy into punching itself, but it seemed to carry enough intelligence to not swing at him. A hand came up, moving to scrape the black-clad hero from its face.

Adrien somersaulted out of the way, across the shoulder and down the arm. He heard the girl at street level yell something up to him. It wasn’t clear enough, but he was pretty sure he understood the gist from the insistence in her voice. He sprang from the arm on to the roof on an adjacent building and whistled for the monster’s attention.

“I’ve heard of someone being dumb as a rock,” he teased, “But I think you’re the most hard-headed thing I’ve ever seen!”

Stoneheart tried to take a step to follow after the little cat, but his feet were caught up, tangled in the trap that had been laid out for him. He tripped and came crashing down, leaving splintered cracks in the pavement.

Adrien jumped down to street level and smirked, raising his hand. This was the first time he was doing this, and he wanted to try out all that he could, so this seemed like the perfect time to test out the power of destruction. A word tickled at the back of his brain, the magic phrase that would activate his power:

“Cataclysm!” His ring sparked with a flash of energy, sending it coursing through his palm and fingers. Black bubbles seeped from it, and he could feel the air crackle around it.

He reached forward to touch the bad guy and end the fight.

“Wait!”

A hand grabbed his wrist and pulled it back. The unknown girl from earlier looked pissed at him, “There’s a _person_ in there!”

“What?” the other hero asked, suddenly confused and unsure of himself.

Both were stirred from their argument as a low rumbling signaled Stoneheart recovering from the fall. He rose once more, now easily standing above the buildings surrounding him. He took up most of the street with his size, and the shadow he cast sent the two heroes into darkness.

A foot swung out and kicked the two, sending them sailing through the air and crashing into a car at the end of the street, which buckled from the pressure – and then began to rust and break down, falling apart as the Cataclysm struck it.

The little black ring on his finger let out a series of five soft beeps.

The two teenagers stood shakily, remarkably only a little sore from the impact. It had hurt in the moment, but quickly turned into a dull throb. Like getting punched in the gut, it had knocked the wind out of them both, but they could struggle to their feet, panting to face their foe.

“That’s a person!” Repeated the girl, “We can’t just go blowing him up! Besides, what if that only made him bigger again?”

“Seems plenty big already…” the boy said, pointing at the rock monster as it marched with purpose towards them. “Do you have any bright ideas?”

Marinette bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to remember what it was that the Kwami had said to her. There was so much, and she was only half paying attention when it was said. The pressure was mounting, it was like the worst history test Marinette had ever been in.

But a soft voice in the back of her mind offered words of encouragement, and she snapped her eyes open, mentally slapping herself. _Focus!_

The words left her mouth before she even fully realized:

“Lucky Charm!” And with a similar magical energy, her yo-yo spun and opened to reveal a white light, coalescing into a tangible object that fell neatly into her outstretched hand.

“Scissors?”

“Correct me if I’m wrong,” the boy said, preparing a battle stance, “But I thought rock beat scissors.”

Marinette thought, looking desperately for any way out of this nightmare scenario. She saw the staff that her ally was holding at the ready, the same one that had freed her from Stoneheart’s grip earlier. Then she looked up at her approaching enemy, his fist closed around whatever crumpled note she saw earlier.

“No, but scissors beats paper. I think I have a plan.”

_What providence_ , Hawkmoth thought to himself, _Both the Miraculous sitting before me, ripe for the taking. So simple. So easy._

Stoneheart felt the same smug victory that his creator did and let out a low chuckle as he marched towards the two small heroes. He was unstoppable. Anything they did to him would simply make him that much stronger, he had no limits anymore – but he would gladly push these two pests to theirs.

The boy leaped into the air again, extending his stick from the ground and rode it up towards Stoneheart’s face. A casual flick of the wrist sent him careening to the side, the backhand sending him over the side of the apartments and into the next street. Stoneheart could collect the ring from his body later. For now, though, the girl must be dealt with.

But looking at where she was a moment ago, she was gone. The momentary distraction of her partner seemed to be all she needed to run and hide.

“COWARD!” Stoneheart screamed out, audible to almost all of Paris.

A small tap against his cheek alerted him towards her presence as she recoiled her yo-yo. A look of determination painted her face. She must be hiding her fear behind false confidence.

The smile returned to Stoneheart’s face, cracking across the boulder that was his head. He turned and raised his hand to smash the building she was taking cover under, but as he brought it down, he noticed a small protrusion sticking from it.

A silver staff was embedded in his grip and holding on for dear life was the hero in black. He was tugging with all of his might. Perhaps Stoneheart miscalculated where he had sent the little hero and he had gotten stuck in his grasp instead of on the other side of the street.

He hardly paid it any attention, but then he felt his grip loosen.

“ _NO!_ ” Cried both Stoneheart and Hawkmoth at the same time.

It was too late, however, his fist was pried open, and his treasure dropped towards the ground, where the red heroine was waiting. As she snipped the note with a pair of scissors, it was like his lifeline was severed. His anchor of power was destroyed in front of his eyes.

All the strength and durability of his form shrank along with his size. He could feel the horrible feelings slip away, much like the butterfly that left the paper. However, much like that butterfly, they still existed.


	4. A Job, Well, Done

“Hey! Great work,” the cat boy said, approaching Marinette with his fist extended, “Pound it?”

She obliged, tapping her knuckles against his, “Who are you?”

“Hmm,” the boy hummed to himself, tapping a claw against his chin, “Call me Chat Noir. Has a nice ring to it, don’t you think? And you?”

Marinette wasn’t great with coming up with names. Back in class, Alya had been the one to name the little doodles that she had made, but Marinette didn’t think that Captain Cake fit the theme, so she just said the first thing that came to mind, “Uh, Ladybug.”

She spotted Ivan sitting there, holding the ripped-up note in his hands. He seemed so small now, amidst the rubble of his rampage. She quickly headed over and crouched down next to the boy.

“Hi,” she said with a soft smile, “You okay?”

Ivan looked up at the girl in front of him, his eyes red and glistening, “I’m sorry,” he said, quickly wiping his eyes, “I didn’t mean to…”

“Hey,” Ladybug said in a soft voice, trying to soothe the kid. She wasn’t exactly sure how, she had never been in a situation like this before, “it’s okay. It’ll all be alright. What’s this you’ve got here?” she asked, lifting half of the note, still clean cut from the scissors.

Ivan lifted the other half to meet it, lining up a series of words – poetry? “It was for a girl I like…” his words trailed off as he blushed. But there was more than just poetry on the page, there were scribbles along the side, mocking words and kissy faces. Kim’s handwriting.

“We can fix it,” Ladybug said. The certainty of her words took even her by surprise. But she knew it was true. The same magic that taught her how to use her power earlier also reminded her of another part of her power.

Ladybug stood and tossed the pair of scissors she had received into the air, “Miraculous Ladybug!” she cried out, it wasn’t what her mind had told her to say, but it felt right.

Chat Noir joined Ivan and Ladybug as the trio watched the scissors explode into a dazzling light and a sea of tiny red insects swarmed through the air. They flew across the street, up the buildings, around the car, and over the paper. Cracks were filled, rubble placed back where it belonged, and everything was put back in its proper place. It was like watching the entire attack play out backwards at high speeds, and before Ivan could finish muttering “Wow…” it was over.

_Beep, beep_. Chat Noir looked down at his ring to see a green paw print slowly fading on its face, “Uh, I better get going. Kinda have somewhere to be,” he grinned and waved at the two, “See you soon?” he asked his partner.

“Hopefully not _too_ soon,” she muttered to herself as he took off.

_Beep, beep, beep_. Ladybug’s own Miraculous warned.

“I should get going too, actually,” she said nervously. She did not want to shock Ivan any further, and she _really_ didn’t want to worry her parents if they checked her room to find she was gone. She gave Ivan a wave and soared back into the air.

But she could not shake the feeling that she was forgetting something.

“I was _so close_!” Hawkmoth insisted as his transformation fell, leaving him in his civilian attire in the dark room, “They were right there. But no matter, this was only a trial run. And it proved to be a rather effective test. Next time will – “

“Next time?” his Kwami exclaimed, floating up next to him with a very cross look on his face, “This _cannot_ continue this way. Do you realize what you just did?”

Hawkmoth glowered down at the small spirit. He could tell he would already become tired of this thing’s irate bickering.

“That was a _child_! Both of them!” Nooroo insisted, “The one you set Stoneheart after, _and_ Stoneheart himself! Akumatizing someone is always an intense emotional, spiritual, and psychological process, that is why it cannot be done too many times, or for too long. It is incredibly taxing normally.

“But what _you_ just did is worse by _far_!”

“Enough,” he snapped, his temperament rising.

“No! I will speak my mind in my matters,” growled the Kwami, “My powers are meant to be used as _understanding_ , as _unity_! They are meant to transmit the wielder’s feelings, connecting with the soul of another and working together _as one_!

“You _tortured_ that boy, while he was already in a vulnerable emotional state. You are _despicable_ if you wish this to continue.”

“I said enough!” Hawkmoth snapped, “I am the wielder of your Miraculous, Nooroo. I am your master, and I shall be treated as such. From now on, I will not tolerate hearing any more of your traitorous talk. You will do as I say, without question or hesitation, do you understand?”

“I would rather die than assist you,” Nooroo said.

“Unfortunately for you,” Hawkmoth countered, “That is not your decision to make.”

Meanwhile, in a small massage studio across town. Wang Fu was being as energetic as his old, weary bones allowed. He had risen to his feet and cheered with his young apprentice, giving the youth a high five in celebration as they saw their two heroes defeat the Akuma.

“They did it Master!”

“Yes. They were amazing,” Fu said, stroking his small beard, “Coordinated, courageous, and clever. Even though they are still amateurs, their talent is truly astounding.”

The apprentice went to the kitchen and began brewing some tea in celebration, obviously comfortable in the old man’s home.

“You know,” he began, as Fu joined him at the table, “I know I shouldn’t be, but it’s still really wild to see the power of a Miraculous in action. _Real_ magic. _Real_ superheroes. It’s one thing to see Wayzz and learn the study from you, Master, but to actually _see_ it in action…”

Fu nodded in understanding. Things had been different during his training as Guardian, but seeing the wielders utilize their powers for the first time was something that he could never forget, “It is truly an awe-inspiring sight. And one day, you too might inspire others.”

The apprentice’s eyes lit up, “Master! Do you mean?”

“Not yet,” the old man chuckled, his own eyes glittering with teasing joy, “But it will not be long. From what I witnessed, I know that I am unable to keep up with our new heroes, let alone the villains that will be sent after them.

“But you must know, my apprentice,” Fu said – suddenly more serious, “You should not wish to rush this. It will signal my retirement once you become the wielder of the Turtle Miraculous, and the responsibility of being a hero on top of a Guardian is a great one to bear.”

The teenager bowed his head as the tea kettle began to whistle, “I understand Master,” he said solemnly, “I did not mean to be… overeager.”

Fu rose and poured two cups of tea, “It is quite alright. You are merely excited, I’m sure. But relax, your time will come. Enjoy the time you have as a teenager while you can, it might come to a close sooner than you might realize.”

Marinette landed with a soft _thud_ on her rooftop balcony and rolled through the hatch on to her bed, just as the last _Beeeeep!_ rang out from her earrings. As her super suit swept off her body, Marinette could feel its power leaving her as well, replacing the tingling energy with a wave of lethargy.

It seemed that this lethargy was also felt by the small Kwami that fell off the earrings and on to the pillow next to Marinette.

“Whoo,” Tikki sighed, “Not bad for a first time. Good work, Marinette.”

Marinette was about to let the praise send her off to a well-deserved nap, but something caught her attention about Tikki’s phrasing, “Wait – what do you mean, first time?” She sat bolt upright, the stress of the earlier situation jumping up to her throat.

Tikki seemed perplexed, “You’re a superhero now. Ladybug.”

“Oh no, no no no no no no. Tikki, I didn’t sign up for a – for a whole subscription! I thought this was a one-time deal! Save Ivan and be done with it?” Marinette shot to her feet and started pacing back and forth, chewing on her nails.

Before Tikki could answer, a voice called up through the trapdoor hatch leading down to the rest of her family’s apartment, “Marinette! Did you hear? It’s safe, a couple of _superheroes_ saved the day!” It was Marinette’s mother, Sabine.

“Uh, yeah! I heard Mom!” Marinette called down.

“Well, it’s been a stressful day for all of us. Want to come down? Your father and I were going to order pizza!”

Marinette looked over at Tikki who was licking her lips and rubbing her tummy – clearly trying to convey something to her wielder, “Pizza sounds great Mom,” Marinette called down, poking her head through the hatch, “Do you mind if I eat it up here though? I’m still… processing.”

Sabine looked up at her daughter’s face, clearly stressed from what had occurred. She wondered briefly if she should say something and offer her help. But she knew Marinette was strong willed – if she ever needed anything (which was hardly ever), she would let her know. So, Sabine nodded and allowed her child to get some rest.

“I’ll let you know when it gets here.”

Adrien had to duck into an alley, his transformation had blinked out only a block away from his house. When he landed, he stumbled as his suit was replaced by the street clothes he was wearing before the transformation.

He caught the little black Kwami that fell from his ring, cradling him in his palms, he was worried he had done something wrong as Plagg groaned loudly, “Oh no! Plagg, are you alright? What happened?”

A weak voice responded, “So… Hungry… Must… Eat…”

Oh. So, he was stuck with a dramatic little spirit. Cool.

“What do Kwami eat?”

“Listen, I haven’t had a corporeal body for a few decades, I don’t know what you people eat anymore. I just need something good.”

Adrien shrugged and tucked his companion into the inner pocket of his shirt and slipped back on to the main street. The first thing he saw was a pizza shop. Luckily, he had just enough pocket change for a plain slice – he couldn’t imagine the spirit would need more than that on account of its size.

After making his purchase, Adrien hurried back to a secluded spot and made sure nobody was watching. The magic might keep Plagg hidden from civilians’ eyes, but he was pretty sure he would get strange looks if a bite of pizza just vanished from view.

Plagg took one sniff and sighed happily, “Oh good, you still do cheeses. This will do for now, but next time get me something tastier,” and with that, he flitted over the slice of pizza, sucking the cheese right off, leaving the dough and sauce untouched.

“You’re a picky one, aren’t you?” Adrien asked, raising an eyebrow.

Plagg burped in response.

Tikki was slowly making her way through a few bites of the pizza Marinette had smuggled away up to her room, but she didn’t seem too keen on finishing it.

“Sorry Tikki, if I knew you liked sweets, I would’ve grabbed a cookie or something from downstairs,” Marinette apologized, picking at her own dinner with a similar lack of gusto. After the fight, Marinette had assumed she would have been starving with all the calories she must have burned, but it seemed that the magic took care of that along with whatever wounds she might have sustained – she didn’t have a scratch on her.

“It’s alright,” Tikki said with a smile, “Anything is better than nothing. I haven’t been used in a while, so transforming tends to take a lot out of me.”

Marinette nodded. Her mind was still reeling from the fight earlier. She had _superpowers_. She was a _superhero_. For now, anyway, she still intended on figuring out where Tikki came from and dropping the earrings off to their rightful owners. And that had to begin sooner rather than later, because she could not stand the idea of fighting another monster anytime soon.

“Can I ask you some questions Tikki?”

Tikki swallowed and cleared her throat before nodding, “Only seems fair.”

“You said that I’m going to be doing this again, the whole suit and yo-yo thing. Does that come with the monsters and danger?”

Tikki let out a giggle that sounded like wind chimes, “Well, yeah. Sorry to say, but superheroes tend to fight supervillains.”

“You’re sure that you want me? I’m so clumsy and awkward. I make a mess out of _everything_ ,” Marinette sighed, thinking about all the times she had tripped or stumbled, dropped something, or broken something. She really wasn’t what she thought of when she pictured a superhero.

Alya was someone she could picture as a hero. She was brave, standing up to Chloe like that. She had the drive; Marinette could see the fire in her eyes whenever she spoke about other heroes. She even stood up for Marinette – a total stranger!

“Marinette, you were chosen to be the wielder of the Ladybug Miraculous,” Tikki said softly, but with conviction, “And after that fight earlier, I would say you’re more than qualified!”

Marinette chewed her lip in thought. Sure, she was happy to help, and was glad that _someone_ was there to help Kim and Ivan, but was it _really_ supposed to be her? It must have been pure, dumb luck that she had managed – she wasn’t even sure _how_ she had managed all that she did. The only thing that could make the situation make sense was the magic that the Kwami had explained earlier, which was not exactly a confidence booster.

Tikki seemed to pick up on her wielder’s anxieties, “Are you alright, Marinette?”

“Yeah!” she nodded, putting on a brave smile, “Never better.”


	5. Welcome Back

School remained closed for a few days. It probably would have been longer, but not much of a case could be made for it. There was no damage to be repaired, nobody had been injured, and it overall seemed to be a freak accident that one of the students was transformed into a living landslide.

Since Ivan was a minor, he was safe from any prying questions from the press and public. The police could only report that they were helped by two unknown superheroes – though Ivan did somehow manage to leak their names, which sent the entirety of Paris buzzing about Ladybug and Chat Noir.

But for all the excitement regarding the new duo, there still seemed to be an edge in the air when it came to their foe. What had made Ivan transform into Stoneheart? Would it happen again? If so, when?

When College Francoise Dupont reopened a week after the attack, these were the feelings that filled the halls; and while Marinette was wary of the next attack, her new friend Alya was much more optimistic about the circumstances.

“Real life _superheroes_ , girl!” She said, for what must have been the twentieth time today – and school hadn’t even begun yet, “How can you _not_ be excited?”

“Because,” Marinette began, shutting her locker door, “You saw that rock monster. It nearly got Kim. It nearly got _you_ , Alya! How can you be so happy?”

“Oh please, Ladybug and Chat Noir handled it! As long as they’re around, we’ve got nothing to worry about when it comes to giant monsters.”

“But what if next time…” Marinette struggled to say the words. She didn’t want to think about it – let alone verbalize her feelings. Alya, noticing the discomfort, laid a gentle hand on her friend’s shoulder and smiled softly at her.

“Hey, it’s okay to be scared,” Alya said, “It _is_ scary. A real life, honest to God _supervillain_ was standing right here,” the two girls had moved from the lockers into the courtyard by this point, and while there was no evidence of Stoneheart’s presence, it was fresh in their minds, “But guess what?

“Now we’re standing here. _If_ it were to happen here again, we can make a break for it like last time and let the heroes deal with it. But for now,” Alya peered around the courtyard with a sly smile, “I don’t see any monsters.”

“I do,” Marinette growled, glaring at a collection of students – headed by Chloe Bourgeois – surrounding Ivan.

Kim was sitting down on the bench next to Ivan, who had his arms crossed, clearly uncomfortable with all the attention he was getting, “So you’re saying you don’t remember _anything_ dude?” Kim asked, “You were really out to get me!”

“I’m sorry,” Ivan said meekly, curling into himself some more, “I… wasn’t myself…”

“ _I’d_ say,” Chloe chimed in, a smirk spreading across her face, “Though, I do think the makeover was an improvement.”

Ivan glowered up at her. He really didn’t want to go to school today, but he thought it would be appropriate to apologize to his peers. He planned on saying sorry to Kim and that new girl, Alya, and maybe Mylene – he hated scaring her; and then he was going to go home. But as soon as he had walked on to school grounds, he could hear the whispers floating around him – he wasn’t even sure how it got out that it was him, but he couldn’t really be surprised, he wasn’t exactly discreet as Stoneheart.

But what was worse than all the whispers were when they stopped. When he went to his locker, he had been met with the scared faces of plenty of classmates – some he didn’t even know. And if he had scared random strangers, he could only imagine how much he had terrified poor Mylene.

“Leave him alone, Chloe,” Alya growled, stepping into the circle to defend the poor boy. Marinette waited off to the side, she might have played superhero before, but she still couldn’t stand up to Chloe. At least Alya was there to do the right thing.

“Oh look, Sabrina!” Chloe chirped, “It looks like the super nerd is playing pretend! Where’s your Ladybug costume, forget it at home?”

The bickering between the two continued, thankfully drawing enough attention away from Ivan for him to make his escape from the group. Marinette watched him disappear towards the lockers and – making sure she wasn’t being watched either – followed him.

When Adrien heard that the school was reopening, he couldn’t miss his chance, and now with the powers of Chat Noir in his hands, he wouldn’t. He had spent the last week practicing in his room – transforming and jumping around, doing backflips off his rock wall and watching videos of how to fight with a staff. Today was easy for him, all he had to do was jump from his window over the wall surrounding his house.

He had already transformed back and was cutting through a park to get to school quicker (and possibly lose the Gorilla and Nathalie if they had followed in the car). He would be there in no time!

“You’re a weird kid,” Plagg said from within the boy’s shirt pocket, “When you play hooky, you’re supposed to _skip_ school.”

“You don’t get it Plagg,” Adrien said, slowing down just a little to catch his breath – he’d hate to be known as the sweaty kid on his first day, “I’ve never really _been_ to school. I just want to make friends and be a normal kid.”

The little black cat poked his head out to give his charge a look.

“Okay, okay,” Adrien chuckled, “A _somewhat_ normal kid. Stay down, would you? We’re getting close.” The Kwami obeyed and Adrien fished a piece of camembert cheese out of his bag, feeding his little buddy as he came up the steps to Francois Dupont.

Alya was red in the face and just about ready to pop one right in Chloe’s smug face. Just as she was about to retaliate on her opponent’s last remark, she was briskly ignored in favor of something over her shoulder.

“ _Adrikins!_ ” Chloe shouted, charging at the blond boy who had just entered the school grounds.

He caught the girl in a tight hug as she kissed both his cheeks. It seemed that the argument had died off, being replaced instead with the excitement of the newcomer. Alya seethed, grinding her teeth together in frustration. The only thing worse than losing an argument was getting ignored halfway through one.

Chloe made quick rounds, introducing the handsome boy to almost everyone in the school, not once releasing his arm. To his credit, “Adrikins” was giving everyone a smile and handshake, repeating names back in an attempt to memorize it all. If he was anything like the queen bee, Alya already hated his guts for being so fake to everyone, but if he was as sincere as he seemed, well, it was a mystery why he was friends with Chloe.

Instead of introducing herself with the rest of the class, Alya sighed and looked around for her friend – only now realizing that the girl was missing.

“Ivan?” It came out quiet, and a little shaky. Marinette cursed herself for being even a little nervous around him – she knew Ivan since primary school, and he was only ever shy and gentle. It seemed impossible that the boy could be the same monster that had attacked their school last week.

But she had to remind herself what Tikki had told her: It wasn’t his fault! Some evil Miraculous wielder had corrupted him and given him the powers of Stoneheart. If she wanted to avoid another run in with the Akuma, she had to make sure that his emotions didn’t run away from him again.

Ivan was sitting on the bench, alone. It seemed that whatever kids that had been in here had run as soon as they saw the sour look on his face. He didn’t look up at Marinette.

“Ivan,” Marinette said softly, sitting at the end of the bench, “Is everything okay?” She bit her tongue; she _knew_ it wasn’t okay.

“Everyone’s scared of me,” Ivan mumbled quietly.

“I’m not.”

Ivan glanced up to see Marinette, she was a sweet girl with a sweet smile. It was soft, and warm, like the bread that she would bring to class sometimes. She was usually quiet, like him.

But he could tell she was scared too. “You can’t even sit next to me anymore.”

Marinette took a deep breath and steeled herself. _He’s not dangerous_ , she reminded herself, _not like this_. She moved down the bench and laid a hand on his shoulder.

“You don’t scare me, Ivan,” Marinette said softly, “It’ll be okay.”

Ivan’s surprise faded quickly into despair again, “No it won’t,” he shook his head, “The whole school thinks I’m a freak. I hurt them; I could’ve _killed_ Kim.” It was all beginning to be too much. His shoulders started to shake. _Great_ , Ivan thought, _now I’m crying like a baby in front of the only person willing to talk to me_.

“That wasn’t _you_ , Ivan,” Marinette pat his back, “That was Stoneheart. I know you would never do something like that.”

“But I _did_ , Marinette,” he choked out, “If I hadn’t been writing that stupid poem…”

“This is _not_ your fault,” Marinette stood and placed both her hands on his shoulders, looking him dead in the eye, “Don’t say that, Ivan. You weren’t yourself,” seeing his eyes still streaming, Marinette spoke softly, “I know that’s not what you are, Ivan. You aren’t a monster. I trust you, Ivan, I know that you don’t want to hurt anyone, especially now.”

Ivan sniffled and wiped his eyes on his sleeve, but it seemed to be working. He was calming down a little bit.

“Out of curiosity,” Marinette said, taking her seat next to him, “What was that note you mentioned?” Obviously, she already knew what it was. Well, _Ladybug_ knew, and Marinette did _not_ want those two people to be the same.

Adrien liked the school so far, and it wasn’t even first period! Everyone was so nice to him, smiling and saying hi. He got the occasional fan asking for a picture or an autograph, he obliged, even if it wasn’t his _favorite_ thing – he didn’t want to seem stuck up. But Chloe did a good job of keeping the more intense ones away from him.

She was also nice enough to show him around to all the places that mattered. She showed him the library where he met some kids who would be in his class, the principal’s office in case he ever needed to talk to an administrator, and a few places where he might find extra curriculars.

“And this,” Chloe said, “Is our classroom.” She swung her arm around with a grand flourish, the room wasn’t totally filled yet, but students were beginning to trickle in.

“This is your seat,” Chloe said, pointing to the one in the front row next to a boy listening to his headphones, “I saved it for you so you could be close to your friends.”

“Thanks Chloe,” Adrien smiled and laid his bag down on the desk. He turned to introduce himself to his new desk-mate, “Hi! I’m Adrien.”

The boy pulled down his headphones and glanced at the extended hand, then up at Chloe and Sabrina behind him, “You’re a friend of Chloe’s?”

Adrien balked. Everyone else in this school had been so warm in their greetings and introduced themselves as quickly as he did. Had he made a misstep interrupting the boy’s music listening? Or was he just rude? Adrien’s father had always said that wearing a hat indoors was rude.

Adrien retracted his hand sheepishly and turned away, only to see Chloe lay a wad of chewed up gum on to the seat across from him.

“Hey,” he said, getting Chloe’s attention, “What’s going on with that?”

“Oh relax, Adrikins,” Chloe soothed, “Just a little present for the pest who sits here. She’s the brat that tried to steal your seat, I figured I should show her what she gets for messing with us.”

“Seems a bit harsh,” Adrien said, getting up from his seat as Chloe and Sabrina took theirs, and begun to try and pick the gum off. It was stuck on pretty good though and it would take him a while to pry it off without leaving a gross trail of the sticky substance.

Marinette walked in, not long after. She had listened to Ivan’s recounting of the events leading up to his possession and gave him some advice: if he wanted to try and patch things up with Mylene, he should go apologize to her with his poetry. It was a sweet and romantic gesture, just how she would like someone to confess to her one day – well, maybe without the Akuma attack leading up to it. She had made the right choice – right?

But while she was mulling over her conversation (only half paying attention to Alya’s complaints about Chloe), she spotted someone crouched over her seat.

“Hey!” Alya shouted, marching over, Marinette in tow, “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Oh!” Adrien jumped at the sudden accusation, “I was – well, you see…” He flailed, gesturing towards the gum on the seat and to himself, all the while looking around at the classroom, the girls, and Chloe.

She and Sabrina seemed unable to hold it in any longer and began cackling like it was the funniest joke they ever made. Marinette frowned and looked at the boy, “A friend of Chloe’s huh?”

_Why does everyone keep saying that?_ He asked himself as he was pushed aside. The girl set a tissue over the gum with a disgusted look on her face and sat down, trying to avoid the area altogether. He wanted to apologize more, but the teacher walked in and asked everyone to take their seats as she began to write the lesson plan on the board, so instead he sulked at his desk.

Which seemed to catch the attention of the boy next to him, who nudged him in the side, “Dude,” he whispered, “Why didn’t you just tell them Chloe did it?”

Adrien shrugged, “I don’t know. I mean, it wouldn’t feel right to just throw her under the bus like that – she’s my…” Adrien was going to say “only” but thought that might be too depressing, “She’s my friend.”

The boy smiled and stuck his hand out, “The name’s Nino, dude. I think it’s time you started making some more friends.”

Hawkmoth sat in the darkness. The black Akuma had returned to him, still bearing the powers he had first infused into it. It was a surprise, but a much welcome one. Nooroo had said that his powers could be nullified by the more powerful Miraculous that those two do-gooders wielded, so he had expected that the catalyst for his powers would have been purified after the fight.

This proved that they were amateurs with their powers, just like him. But they were not as clever. He had not seen nor heard of any sightings of the two heroes since the attack of Stoneheart – which meant to him that they were not looking for him, or his Akuma. Furthermore, they were not practicing their powers, they were still inexperienced.

“Well,” he muttered to himself, “They do say practice makes perfect.” He chuckled and cradled the black butterfly in his hand, bestowing new power into it. Dark purple energy swirled and surged into the butterfly.

Those two heroes had barely managed to defeat Stoneheart once – how would they survive this next trick he had implemented? The entire city was terrified, it was only a manner of time before his specific target became subject to his emotions again and the Akuma could once more begin an assault.

He had come close to his victory last time, and he was hardly _trying_. Now, with this one mistake that they had made, he was certain that he would succeed.


	6. Stoneheart - part 3

After his talk with Marinette, Ivan had some confidence now. It wasn’t a lot, shaky at best, but it was there, and that was all he needed. He spent the next few minutes writing another quick poem to Mylene – this time free from Kim’s influence. He had to make it count if he wanted to make up for his transformation into Stoneheart, and he was hoping to do more than just that.

He really liked Mylene. She was sweet and patient and kind. They were both quiet and reserved, but Ivan had learned a lot about her just by paying attention. They liked the same books and tv shows, they both ate peanut butter sandwiches without the jelly, they both liked art and music and poetry, even though neither of them was in any of the clubs that focused on such things.

They had both been bullied for being shy. Ivan was often scared of things, but whenever he saw Mylene, he got braver, trying to show her that everything would be okay – there was nothing to be scared of.

He said as much in the poem. It wasn’t perfect, but Marinette had urged him to action – she had said that if he kept waiting for perfection, then all his chances would slip right by him. Ivan knew he wasn’t perfect, after last week, that much was abundantly obvious. But maybe all he needed was a little luck.

_Fortune favors the bold_ , he thought to himself as he moved towards Mylene’s locker. The bell was going to ring soon, and Ivan didn’t see his crush anywhere. He considered just tossing it into one of the slots in her locker and wait for her to find it at the end of the day, but just as he was about to, the door to the girl’s bathroom opened behind him.

Mylene rushed out, worried she was going to be late. Her hands were still dripping from the sink. She almost ran into a large black mass but skidded to a halt just in time. She turned her head upwards to meet the gaze of Ivan.

She didn’t want to be scared; she knew Ivan. He was sweet and gentle, she _knew_ that.

But he had surprised her. A gasp passed her lips as she gazed up into the face that loomed over her. Ivan was a big guy – huge even. The lights shined above him and gave a deep shadow across his eyes.

“Hi, I-Ivan,” Mylene said in a small voice. Ivan’s jaw clenched, but he didn’t speak.

He couldn’t. Now that the moment he had been waiting for was presented before him, he froze. He was afraid. All the worst-case scenarios came crashing into his head like a ton of bricks and he was left there stammering. He tried to hold out the note to Mylene, hoping that she would take it and he wouldn’t need words with her – they could just be quiet together.

But her wide eyes were fixated on his. She seemed to be trembling as her own thoughts turned towards the attack last week. She tried not to think about it, it was so scary. But Mylene had seen enough of the attack that images of rubble and clouds of dust to fill her vision.

The bell broke the silence.

“I-I’m going to be late for class!” Mylene said, brushing past the large boy as she made her way towards the classroom they shared.

But Ivan wasn’t going. He collapsed on to a bench and pressed his fists against his eyes, crumpling the poem in the process. _I knew it_ , Ivan thought glumly, _she is scared of me_. He couldn’t shake those eyes from his mind. He could see how terrified she was in them. They normally looked so pretty – but now all the glitter was gone, replaced instead with the dust of the Akuma attack.

Everyone was scared of him. Chloe was right, he was a monster. He had almost killed Kim. Even Marinette could barely be near him. Once she was done giving her sympathies, she had bolted out of the room – even she couldn’t stand to be with him.

He slowly opened his teary eyes and glanced down at what he had written in the poem for Mylene, ready to tear it up. He looked at it just in time to see a little black butterfly alight on the paper and disappear into it.

An all too familiar voice whispered in his head, “Hello again Stoneheart,” Hawkmoth crooned, “Are you ready for round two?”

Ivan grabbed his head, trying to shake the voice out, “No!” he shouted, “I don’t wanna be Stoneheart! Not ever again!”

“I understand you, young man,” the velvety voice continued, “I’m only here to help. The world is hard and complicated, I only seek to simplify things. I can give you what you want, but only if you take this power.”

“I. Don’t. Want. It,” Ivan growled. He could feel the pressure on his mind. His rationality was being sunk in an ocean of tears. His willpower tearing apart under the knife of Hawkmoth’s voice.

“Oh? You don’t want revenge? Aren’t you angry at your so-called friends who have abandoned you?” Hawkmoth wasn’t expecting so much resistance from the child – it seemed much harder to possess someone who had felt his influence once before. But that would not stop him, he only needed to adjust his strategy. Turning him against his friends was the first step towards that.

As Ivan’s panic settled in a little more, Hawkmoth could feel deeper into his mind. Names. He was looking for names.

“I almost killed Kim last time,” Ivan choked out. He was now cradling his knees to his chest and was crying, unaware of the purple moth floating around his face. It felt like he was in a room with no door, empty except for the calm, even tones of his captor.

“Then, you were angry, and your transformation reflected that. But now, Stoneheart, I offer you a different reward,” Hawkmoth purred in his ear, “I can see that you are heartbroken, my boy. Mylene,” Hawkmoth almost said another girl’s name beginning with M, but luckily corrected himself just in time, “If you wish her to be yours, I can make it so.”

That seemed to catch Ivan’s attention. At least enough for Hawkmoth to begin eroding the boy’s other sensibilities. He silenced the boy’s rationality first, then he began to eat away his fear, but slowly so that he wouldn’t notice. Hawkmoth hadn’t realized what delicate work teenage emotions were, but luckily, he was a masterful manipulator.

“Will I have to hurt anyone?” Ivan’s voice shook. He knew he couldn’t resist the temptation, but he might be able to mitigate the damage.

“Only those you want to,” Hawkmoth said, flaring up the boy’s anger and resentment, “Chloe Bourgeois perhaps? And, of course, if those two meddlesome heroes get in your way again. They stand against us, Stoneheart, and if they stop you, then you’ll never have Mylene.”

Ivan wiped his eyes and stood, once more allowing the evil magic to sweep over his body. He started to march out towards the courtyard as his old form returned to him, growing in size and mass until he towered above the school. But something was different about the transformation this time – there was more there, more power, more magic.

It filled his stomach with butterflies.

The late bell rang just as Mylene rushed in and took her seat next to Alix. She seemed nervous, then again, who wasn’t today. Some of the kids in class hadn’t even shown up because of what happened last week.

Marinette hoped everything was okay.

Miss Bustier began to mark the absences but didn’t get very far before a boulder smashed down the door to the classroom. Everyone began to scream and back away into the far corner next to the bank of windows.

However, they shattered too as a giant hand swept in and scooped up a student. Miss Bustier tried to shout above the screams, instructing everyone to take cover under their seats. In the chaos, nobody managed to do a head count.

“ _Ridiculous_!” Chloe shouted, stamping her foot, “I will not stand to have Adrien’s first day ruined- “

She was cut off by another hand sweeping in and picking her up and out of the class, almost as an afterthought.

Chloe’s concerns were not unwarranted however, as Adrien had escaped from the classroom and dived out of sight of others, quickly transforming into Chat Noir. _Couldn’t even make it past roll call_ , he complained to himself as he leaped into the air.

He quickly took stock of what was happening. Stoneheart was back and as big as ever. He had taken two hostages this time – Chloe and another girl (though Adrien had not made it far enough in the register to hear her name). But he didn’t seem intent on hurting either of them… yet.

“Hey Rocky Road!” Chat Noir called out, hoping to get the monster’s attention, “Put them down! We beat you once before, and we’ll do it again!” He struck a battle stance, perched atop a chimney and trying not to shake. To be honest, Ladybug had done most of the defeat-the-bad-guy thing. Chat was just a distraction.

And since Ladybug was nowhere in sight, distract he must. At least until she got here and had a better plan. But Chat Noir was doomed if the thing called his bluff, he couldn’t fight Stoneheart at this size, even without the students clutched in the rock monster’s fists.

Stoneheart turned to look at the little black cat, all alone, and let out a little chuckle resembling the sound of a car engine. “You outnumbered me before, kitty cat, but this time _I’ve_ got the numbers advantage.”

Chat Noir watched as Stoneheart’s chest heaved and throat swelled. It looked like he was going to spit up bile. But what came out was worse by far.

A swarm of black butterflies were hacked up like a hairball and immediately flew towards the ground where students were being evacuated. Chat Noir’s eyes widened in horror as he watched the people he had only just been introduced to transform, covered in earth and stone, emerging as miniature figures of Stoneheart. They all turned as one to look up at the boy in black.

As soon as the air was clear, Alya surged to the broken hole in the window, phone in hand. She was recording the events around her in wonder. Last time she had gotten blurry photos of the giant stone monster, but this time she was going to get up close evidence of the super-heroic action surrounding her.

Marinette couldn’t help but stare in astonishment. Alya was so brave, so determined, so _focused_ on getting what she wanted. She only followed Miss Bustier’s instructions to get away from the window when she saw black butterflies dance towards her.

But instead of diving for cover, she flew out towards the courtyard.

Marinette bit her lip. She knew she was _supposed_ to be like her friend, brave and strong and so certain of herself. _That’s_ what a good superhero would do. But she didn’t have it in her, she would just mess up again. She just knew that this was all her fault. Alya would make a much better hero than she did…

Then it clicked in her head. Alya! Marinette couldn’t be Ladybug, but _Alya_ sure could! She would probably even welcome it, the way she went on about superheroes and standing up for what’s right and all that. Marinette rushed out after her friend, calling her name.

She skidded to a halt at the stairs leading up to the school entryway. Things were worse than she thought. Worse by far.

Not only was Stoneheart back, but there were _more_ stone creatures. Marinette saw the largest one walking down the street towards the Eiffel Tower in her peripheries. Chat Noir was doing his best – but he was overwhelmed. Between the numerous foes and the fact that he couldn’t counterattack, he could barely stay out of their grasp, let alone chase down the main threat.

Chat managed to squeeze between the legs of one of the monsters, rolling into a fighting stance. He couldn’t stay in it long though as a hand swung down, trying to splat him like a bug. A flip out of the way turned into a duck as another pair of hands clapped just inches above his ears. He pirouetted and stuck the landing on top a pair of rocky shoulders. A back spring landed him on the ground just in front of another enemy.

A kick to the back sent him careening into the awaiting hands of another. He extended his stick to pry open the fingers and drop to the ground, only barely managing to somersault out of the way of a follow up kick.

One of the stone creatures lifted a car above its head and threw it towards the hero, who sprung into the air to avoid it. But behind him was the front of the school building. He spotted one of his classmates, she had been angry at him earlier for putting gum on her seat. She would be struck by the ton of metal if he didn’t do something.

His adrenaline seemed to stretch the half second into an eternity. He threw his baton with as much strength as he could muster, tapping the button to extend it as it left his grip. It flew through the air, growing longer, longer, longer. Just long enough to push the girl to the ground and wedge the car another foot into the air, just enough space for her to curl up, stuck. But alive.

Chat Noir didn’t have time to admire his handiwork, however, as a stone being snatched him out of the air and began to march him away.

The car trapped Alya, pinning her to the ground. Marinette couldn’t move a car. She couldn’t save her friend who had saved her from Chloe. She looked up to see Chat Noir captured. He couldn’t help Alya. Marinette couldn’t help him.

But Ladybug _could_. She felt a surge of… something in her chest. Marinette was still scared; she wasn’t sure if she could do it. But she had to try. _Someone_ had to do _something_. She was the only one there.

She opened up her purse where Tikki had been hiding, relieved to see the little Kwami smiling up at her. Marinette didn’t know if she could do it, but Tikki did. Tikki believed in her, that much was obvious from the steel in her eyes, reflected in Marinette’s own as she spoke the words:

“Spots On!”


End file.
